1953-01-03 — Page 11

F

No. 2 in the series of

Such fights as

this I shall

never forget..

by

PETER WILSON

with drawings by ROBB

OR two days I had been sitting in an hotel room in De troit watching the rain come down. Three thousand five hundred miles. seemed an

the then British middle- weight champion, Dick Turpin, elder brother of Randolph.

This was the first post-

THE CHINA MÀIL, SATURDAY, JANUARY 8, 1953.

SMASH HITS

impotence, was beating hilm In- to a tin of shoe polish.

He fought on and on though he had but one hand

CERDAN v. LaMOTTA

.....

In interval after interval Cerdan's seconds begged him to retire. He just shook his head grimly....

man who had Cerdan; furthermore,

She so the tuch Uish. ever

fact, his wife,

Intent on maintaining the

uncommonly war promotion at Empress "larn" the long way to have travelled Hall and, in my eyes, Dick tilted his crown, to do what I could have Turpin's greatest fight. slightly, askew. equally well accomplished in Cerdan had not appeared in Manchester--which Detroit distinctly resembles. I have rarely been more browned-

now, just onder, three months

50 was,

did in

costs,

a series fight since winning That was in Murch 1849, and entente cordiale at all the world's title from Tony later. I was to see Cerdan for Cerdan tried to point out the Zału in 12 rounds at Jersey the tenth line in the sixth error of their off in my sports journeys. City more than six months different country,

It

1949 June was

curfler and his timing show- and the reason for my visited signs of ring rustiness.

to the

motor city 328 Turpin, as ever, boxing world's middleweight on the defensive, made the

between the

the title fight

French holder, Marcel Cer- dan, and his tough, rugged Italian-American challenger, Jake LaMotta.

Rustiness

IN the preceding 48 hours there had been plenty of time to recall some of the exploits of Cerdan, sailor of the fighter France, und whom I had seen in more countries than any boxer.

other

Cafe night

Now he was to do battle with only one American-bul an American who was a one- man riot. Not for nothing did they call Jake, LaMotta "the Bronx Bult."

At that time he WAS the only fighter ever to have gain ed a decision over Sugar Ray Robinson and it was his boast that he had never been knock- ed off his timber-like legs in 88 fights.

At the bell Cerdan kwelled his chest that chest like a busted mattress and landed the first two punches, a couple of left to the head. Tien burly Joke was on him, thump- ing and smashing and clubbing to the body.

Cerdan used his feet, tried to peck away at his man's head

and keep him at a distance,

but LaMotta "bulled" his way Into

clinch, rushed

In interval after Interval Cordan's handlers begged him to relire. Although groana were coming from between his liver-coloured lips-subsequent- ly it was announced that ho had suffered a hemorrhage in one of his shoulder muscles he shook his head grimly,

But in the minute separating the ninth and · tenth round someone summoned the doctor, and when the bell for the tenth session elenged, ho still there bending over stricken Frenchman and Cer- Han's world title had gone.

Was

tho

The Frenchman's dressing room was like a casualty clear- ing station, and he was groan=" ing like a wounded man us the doctor's fingera probed his hairy left shoulder, but across the way in LaMotts's room

thero was the joyous pandemonium of victory.

His pride

E E next day I flew back to

New York with Cerdun.

the He wore a bat and dark glasses

Frenchman across the ring, and to mask the worst of hla visi- slung him to the canvas.

Disastrous

THE champion did not seem to be hurt. He was up at the count of two, but he had fallen awkwardly on his left shoulder and although no one knew

prove then the injury was to disastrous.

it

ways to the raiding party, but as his Eng- lish in those days was limited to: "Left ook," "bloody Bose," and "dami good." 'negotiations

In the second round Cerdon broke down quite carly.

took the offensive, crossing his jaw time after sorneone, right to tho then that

pardonable time with a power and an ac- curacy which made LaMolta's eyes blink.

husky Frenchman miss by I THOUGHT. how far this It was

into tho swarthy warrior with the falling inches and time after time bull's-eye look had came in the error of believing that seven brought him

had up snorting 32 years which

clapsed one is fairly good odds, tried from his with stiff jabs and counters since he was born in a Foreign to remove Cerdan

A own cafe. That was mis- Legion garrison lown. which reddened Cerdan's

take. and made him grunt with baffled rage.

nose

But you don't become [1

There was the lime when he had wanted to be a footballer and very nearly achieved inter- national status. And there was that famous night when seven no- somewhat "pixilated" G.I.S thing. In the seventh came into the Cafe len Roches Turpin misjudged the near- Nohs." ness of the ropes, Cerdan

world champion for

Their eyes fell upon

Dangerous

LL at once there were only six Americans, then ayo. then four three two one

had what-none. Never 4 squad

On my scare card the third round also went to Cerdan by a whisker, but that was the chd of the fight and the begin- ning of the massacre.

on

lift

his

From the fourth round wards Cerdan could not his ett glove higher than shoulder, even to defend him- self.

ble hurts.

pained

But the one which Elm most was the injury to his pride and the loss of his trea- sured title. Throughout the flight, he muttered: "I aght 'cem again. I must tet buck."

win

But ho never did. He never got the opportunity.

LaMotta, of course,. was compelled to give him a re turn, but the American Injured his arm in training and had to call for a postponement, Then October towards the end of 1943 everything was signed and settled, and Cerdan decided to go over carlier than usual as to ensure a lengthy prepara- Hon for the fight.

so

I shall

the never forget shock of buying an evening

the paper and seeing

great, staring black headlines: "Plane crashes in the Azores. Marcel Cerdan believed aboard,"

And, Indeed, he had been aboard, and when the rescue If his life had depended on party arrived at the mountain- top into which the plane bad crowded him, whipped in they could only regard as a fallen in in threes so smartly, I do not believe he could crashed only the shattered body have scratched his head with of one of the best middle- a left hook to the jaw and, very cute dish. Initiative being blank file and all: with Turpin already falling highly

Then matelot Marcel set out his lati. hand, and think what weights I ever saw was left.

that means when you're UP- There were no survivors, like a log, and so utterly were at once undertaken. to and a posse of military against one of the toughest,

policemen, because North Afrin roughest 100-pounders in

the I remembered, particu- felt the final punch, the Now there Was only one ca was a dangerous plachtor

world. larly, his third appear Frenchman rammed in a campaign. The Black Rocks his American copains to come snag about the whole plan of strangers and he did not wish in London-against right to the body just to Cafe happened to belong

to to any harm.......

anco

unconscious that he never

encouraged its the US Army. scouting operations

BRITAIN'S THREE

THREE QUEENS

A

THEY MAKE

OUR MONARCHY A WORLD FORCE

Ta time of develop By Professor D. W. Brogan

ment in a great na-

tional institution,

which; since the institution But it is not difficult to are almost as rare as re-

There

Even her own role gave her some discomfort; she expressod doubts about the capacity

endless duties of the Throne.

01

any woman to carry out the

That Queen Victoria played

more than

row a phrase from that eml- nent republican, Bernard Shaw)

is embodied in a person, see the difference between publics were then. cannot be treated simply as an obscure and indiscreet was not in 1911 a single re- an institution, it may seem German Princess, with little public in Asia, although the the role of widow odd to insist on the unique knowledge or understanding "Mandate of Heaven" Was Queen until she melted under historical situation in which of the country to which about to be taken away Dizzy's blandandhering (to bor- WO find ourselves. For she had been openly from the Manchus. never before have there brought to fill up the slen- been three Queens alive in der ranks of heirs to George Now, if monarchy is not is also well known, threo generations. Nor on IV., and the mother of the quite as rare in Asia as in any of the previous occa present Queen Elizabeth. Europe, it is getting rare aloris when a woman as-

and the old religious awe cended the Throne has Queen Elizabeth has there been a Queen mother stepped in to a far more has gone or is going. alive, still less a Queen goodly heritage, from the grandmother.

family point of view, than did her great-great-grand- mother.

Indeed, only once before has a mother lived to see her daughter ascend the throne us Queen Regnant. Matilda, Mary I, Elizabeth,

Queen Mary, her daughter-in- law and her granddaughter have Nor ig - this tho only known a mora.

doubtful, dan- transformation. For, in an gerous, and difficult world, and age of change, a time of the It is a world in which women, breaking of nations, the royal or not, have been called role of that Royal society on to play roles inconceivable

in the 19th century. into which Queen Mary was

We have seen born has changed. No one

Queen Mary now could play the role of looking after the social educa- case their mothers had pre- ment is that the Queen's "Uncle of Europe" as her tion and entertainment of her deceased their accession; in mother and grandmother father-in-law did; dynastic granddaughters with a wisdom the case of Elizabeth, in

born. linka mean less and less, and tolerance that was not Bufficiently disagreeable

There had been no Queen of Monarchies are national or exemplified by Queen Vistoria.

Mary II, Anne, in every Another mark of develop-

way.

But none of the Queens had a mother to guide her when the terrible burden of

her.

aro

both nativo

England born in that coun- nothing.

try between Catherine Parr

and Queen Mary.

It is when we reflect on

It is still true. and it is part

of the strength of the menurely that the new Sovereign is not only like Cleopatra "descended of so many Royal King" bit

the great changes in the Last and perhaps most has, in her mother and grand- dynastic world that have important of all, the age of mother, the living exemplars of occurred since Queen Mary the three Queens is an age the supremely difficult role of the Crown descended on, was crowned in 1911 that when among the many being a mother in the too derce something of the novelty of landmarks that have been light that beats upon the the British Monarchy can removed is the old known Throne. None anve one: Queen; be appreciated.

unshakable one that fenceit The Brillah Mararely, one of Victoria's mother was alive,

off what was called the ire few, stabiliaing forces ib and the Duchess of Kent In 1911, there were only right place of women a world in great need of them. wilk suffer nothing by, allowing lived far longer after her three Republics in Europe:PANEL daughter's accession than is France, Switzerland and the {. Thus Queen Victoria, for all to the new Sovereign,, the wights her sense of dusty and dignity, of in wife and maitice as well, na generally recogaland. She now-born republic had se pdor opinlyn of the hell the splanadura stad - miaries of did not die until 1861, Portugal. New monarchler ten bilties of bar servis ke Throne

Gradually Cordan's checks the assumed and forehead calour and consistency of raw rainced beef. A cut ou the fedge of his right eychrow leak- od red tears, LaMotta, reails-

full Log

well hir

semi-

Sleep well, Marcel, sailor of France, fighter of the world.

(World. Copyright-Landon Express Servicą). Next Saturday: PETER KANE v.. LOUIS PIERRE

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